A unique and twisty thriller that you will not be able to put down, breaking the promise of "just one more chapter". An isolated island off the coast of Sweden was once the site of a mysterious disappearance of four friends visiting the island for their annual girls trip. A decade later the once isolated island is being developed into a swanky yoga retreat. Tessa Nilsson has been obsessed with the case of the missing women for years, and after her once popular podcast and career has imploded she needs to prove herself by solving the case. Tessa's friend Anneliese is getting married and is offered the opportunity to host her bachelorette party at the yoga retreat on the island before it opens to the public. What happened to the four women, and why can't Tessa shake the feeling that history may repeat itself? The tagline "Scream meets The Guest List" left me with high expectations, and this book did not disappoint. I absolutely loved the book, and just like a good horror movie it made me feel jumpy and fully invested in the story. I would highly recommend this book for those who love the classic horror movie, with strong female characters, excellent twists and turns and a satisfying ending. Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the digital ARC, all opinions are my own.

Thank you to St. martins Press, Minotaur Books and Macmillan Audio for advanced copies of this novel. Here are my thoughts.

Four young women took regular trips to a small island off the coast of Sweden. It was a secret place and the only place that they could escape just them, but unfortunately ten years ago someone found them, and they were never seen or heard from again. Present day, Tessa has just blown up her true crime podcasting career. But when her best friend invites her to her bachelorette party which takes place on the same island of the missing women she can’t help but join in.

This book has everything you want for a fun summertime thriller. I really liked Tessa and I thought she was written well as a woman who feels like her life is falling apart and she kind of just wants to hide. I was sympathetic towards her, but her true crime obsession felt a little crazy at times. The other characters all filled a different niche in this story and some I hated, and some I enjoyed.

The twists and turns were fun and throughout, and it started off more as a mystery to me but then escalated into a thriller closer to the end of the novel where it is truly gripping. The pacing of the novel was spot on, and I was intrigued both by Tessa’s past and present, which balanced nicely and just enough hints and context clues were provided.

This is my first novel by Camilla Sten, and I enjoyed it! Would read others, and hope I get to enjoy more thrillers like this one this summer!

The Bachelorette Party by Camilla Sten in quick, rapid-fire thoughts.

This book literally gets one full star for the amount of atmosphere Sten created! There was a palpable frightening edge to many scenes and the characters' fear was tangible!

Unfortunately, the various characters and two timelines were confusing to keep straight.

The plot was slightly predictable, although it still managed to give me a couple shocks!

The audiobook, narrated by Laura Jennings, was really well done. Jennings's voice added a breathiness to the narration which added an additional level of suspense!

When I was desperate to read another summer thriller, this one really scratched the itch!

Thank you NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books, and Macmillan Audio for the complimentary copies to read and review.

This book was full of wild twists and turns. Just when I thought I had figured out the twist, more happens and I realized I was not right. I really got sucked into this one and finished it straight in one time chunk because that’s how invested I got. I got really invested in Tessa who is the narrator and really enjoyed her perspective but also how it would switch back to ten years ago. I definitely will be looking into other books by this author because this was so good and I enjoyed it a lot. The setting was perfect for the mood of this mysterious story.

Slow paced to me, I normally enjoy big group, something goes wrong dynamics but I didn’t care what happened to these characters at all.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC for exchange for my honest opinion.

This was good, quick read! It opens strong, I was hooked in from the prologue and definitely wanted to know what was going on. I liked the plot and the setting. I did know the entire time that Adam was Linnea’s boyfriend, but I think the reader is supposed to know that so we suspect him more. I didn’t see the other twists coming though. Some of dialogue was poorly written, and I wish Tessa has tried a little harder to actually find out what had happened to the four missing women. She kept talking about how she wanted to get justice but didn’t actually do much to find out what had happened.

Tension‑filled island setting with oppressive, eerie vibes
Complex emotional arcs, particularly surrounding loss and vengeance
An unpredictable final act that delivers a memorable payoff

A riveting and atmospheric thriller, The Bachelorette Party cements Camilla Sten as a rising voice in the genre. It’s recommended for readers who appreciate slow‑burn builds, richly haunted settings, and morally layered narratives—even if they require patience for the payoff. A solid 3.5–4 stars out of 5, delivering enough suspense and psychological depth to linger long after the final page.
Who Should Read It?
Ideal for fans of:

Nordic noir and psychological suspense
Dual‑timeline mysteries
Isolation thrillers with emotional depth and dark twists

Really enjoyed this read! Loved the setting and the premise. Definitely binge-worthy, I read this all in one sitting. If anything I wish the book had been longer and more drawn out, I would have liked more suspense before we got into the thriller aspects and to have gotten to know the characters even better before we jumped into the action. I will also flag that this book is a bit more graphic in its depiction of violence than the average thriller, at least to me. You can see the level of depicted violence in chapter 1 so you will know right away if it's too much for you.

Tessa and her friends had a bachelorette party on a deserted island where four women went missing ten years ago.

This went back and forth between past and present. Being able to see the lives of the women (or one of the women) who went missing helped piece together what happened and why.

I had my suspicions about who the “bad guy” was, but I couldn’t figure out the “why.” And when it was revealed, well, that was something I didn’t expect.

It got a little crazy near the end. But it was dramatic, suspenseful, and a great read.

The book started promising but it went downhill in the last third, hence my low rating. It was engaging and the pace was decent, but the twists towards the end were unbelievable. It felt as if the author wanted to create a shocking ending, which she sort of did, but the execution was not the greatest.
I will read other books by the author, hopefully next one will be more up my alley.

This book had me from the very first page. I couldn't stop reading it. It was a slower-paced suspense mystery/thriller with not a lot going on, but hooked me.

Ten years prior, four friends go missing on this remote island, and Tessa is determined to find out what happened to them. Luckily, her childhood best friend has decided to have her Bachelorette Party on the same island that the group of women disappeared. This book is full of suspicious behavior, unlikeable characters, and a backstory of a few characters that is questionable. One of the main themes in this one is that hurt and determined people will do some pretty messed up stuff.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this book in return for an honest review.

Ten years ago four friends went missing on their annual trip to a remote island off the coast of Sweden. Today, a group of friends is visiting a newly built resort on the island for a bachelorette party. Tessa, one of the attendees, has been obsessed with true crime for years, even launching a successful podcast on the topic. She is fascinated by the story of the four friends that went missing right where she is now visiting. When strange things start to happen during the trip, Tessa can't help but wonder what the connection is between their group and the missing girls.

This is a good book if you're looking for a quick suspenseful escape. I didn't connect super well with any of the characters but the plot was good and definitely worth the read.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press Minotaur Books for the ARC of The Bachelorette Party.

FIRST off a big thank to the publisher Harlequin for the invite to read Camilla Sten's new book The Bachelorette Party, because 1 I had no idea she was coming out with a new book and 2 just like her other 2 books which I read and loved this one is a 5 star for me , I loved how it gave off the feeling of the old slasher film vibe as well as the Atmosphere that you got while been on the island , there's just something about that Trope ( where you have a group of friends or strangers, coming to together in a Remote location and there's only one in and out and something happens, secrets start to come out , and murder comes into play ) and Camilla Sten is one of the author's that definitely do this trope right . Can't wait to see what else she comes up .

""𝑾𝒆𝒍𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑾𝒊𝒕𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑯𝒐𝒖𝒓. 𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝑻𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒂 𝑵𝒊𝒍𝒔𝒔𝒐𝒏, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒐𝒅𝒂𝒚 𝒘𝒆 𝒃𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑩𝒂𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒆 𝑷𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒚.""

Special thanks to @camillasten @minotaurbooks @macmillianaudio & @netgalley for the #gifted eARC and ALC.

👉🏼 swipe for synopsis ➡️

𝙈𝙔 𝙍𝙀𝙑𝙄𝙀𝙒:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I have this one audio and ebook and found that the audio was too confusing for me. I couldn't seperate the then from the now, so I switched to my kindle and it seemed to flow alot better for me.

Once it starts going I became so invested. I needed to know all the things. About the nacka four, about what happened to Tessa, what happened on the island, everything. The last 50% had me gasping almost every other chapter. One new revelation after another. The layers this story gives you at the end will leave you with some question, but it's soooooo worth it.

Im so glad I decided to read this rather than give up on the audio all together.

Also, I'll never go to an island for any type of party ever. Im officially scarred 🤣

𝙋𝙐𝘽 𝘿𝘼𝙔:
June 10, 2025

ℚ𝕆𝕋𝔻❓️⁉️❓️ Did you have / been to a bachelorette party? What did you do?

.
.
.

#mysteryandthrills #thrillersandsuspense #thrillerfriendsunite #thrillerlover #thrilleraddict #thrillerjunkie #thrillergirlie #bookbuzz #camillasten #thebacheloretteparty #minotaurbooks #macmillanaudio #partner #netgalley
.

I really really struggled with the authors writing style. Ultimately this just was not for me.

Thank you NetGalley, the author and St Martins Press for an advanced copy in exchange for a review.

Hurt people, hurt people. I enjoyed this fast paced, locked room style thriller/mystery. The Bachelorette Party follows a group of friends who spend time at an island known for being involved in past tragedy. You know immediately that this story won’t end well and I did guess some of the twists but the journey there was enjoyable and made for a perfect summer thriller.

I'm not usually a thriller girl but this one had me hook, line and sinker. Whatever I thought I figured out was next week exactly what I thought it was going to be.
A true crime podcaster, who has essentially quit her job, was invited to a bachelorette party for her sister to a remote island that was the location of a set of cold case murders from one night a decade before. While she tries her best to not uncover what happened, she is drawn into the same thing happening to her own weekend group or is it?
A bit Agatha Christie, a bit Karin Slaughter. Totally worth reading.

This was a fun, quick “locked room” mystery about a group of friends stuck on an island which has a past mystery associated with it. I enjoyed the story but felt that the ending was a little predictable. Would have been 5 stars if there was more of a shock factor!

Overall it was an ok thriller. I wish the 2 timelines would have connected a little more.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this eArc in exchange for an honest review!

**2.5-stars rounded up**

The Bachelorette Party is primarily set on a remote island off the coast of Sweden. The story follows two different timelines and includes a podcast element. All of these were selling points for me, but unfortunately, I found the presentation quite choppy, and I was never really able to settle into the story to enjoy it.

The early set-up involves a group of four women, who make a trip to the island together every year. Best friends since childhood, it's a tradition they keep in order to continue the good times and their friendship. They're also very secretive about the island's location; telling no one. They have it just for themselves. This one night of fun without any ties to their regular lives was always a great thing for the women. Until it wasn't.

Ten years later, Tessa Nilsson, a recently disgraced podcaster, decides to focus on a true crime case that has captivated her attention since she was kid. It's the story of four friends, who went to a remote island for a night, but were never seen again. As luck would have it, Tessa's best friend is about to get married, and her Bachelorette Party is a yoga retreat, set on a remote island with many similarities to the one the friends went missing from a decade ago.

Tessa, of course, attends the retreat and the way things go, she's positive this is the place. Someone is out for revenge, but for what and for who?

I don't know what else to say. That's what the story is about, but it failed to stay with me. In my brain and directly out. I didn't vibe well with the way it was written and found it difficult to stay focused on the back and forth. Tessa's perspective was the most interesting thing going on for me, but even that started to lose me after a while.

I do think if you read this one at the right moment, perhaps it could be a win for you. Please don't let my apathy about it keep you from at least giving it a try. I would categorize it as a Popcorn Thriller, so it could be a good one to bring with you this Summer to the beach, or on a quick Weekend Getaway.

Personally, I wish it could have captured my attention a little more, because the premise was certainly intriguing. At the end of the day, we can't love them all, and this one just wasn't for me. I know many Readers are going to enjoy it, and you could be one of them!

Thank you to the publisher, Minotaur Books and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with copies to read and review. I have enjoyed novels from Camilla Sten in the past, and will continue to check out all her new releases. My favorite so far, if you're interested, has been The Resting Place.